The Truth About Protein Bars (That No One’s Talking About)

Davids, Barebells, Kind - they're quick, convenient & legit everywhere...but not all that shimmers is gold my friend

Hi love,

So last week, my sister who is currently on a health kick sent me this text:

Now I rarely give unsolicited nutrition advice and will typically provide more nuance, but this is my sister and I was busy so I kept it short.

A few days later, she posted it on her instagram story….and I was met with this 👇🏼

Alas, we decided we are well overdue for a protein bar breakdown.

My clients, my friends, my colleagues - all are constantly asking about protein. How much? Where to get it? How to add on more? Whey vs. Collagen vs. Plant Based?

It’s a never ending protein frenzy….and bars are at the heart of it.

So let’s dive in

Protein Bars: Health Halo With a Processed Core.

Protein bars = an ultra-processed food

And no ultra-processed food = health food.

If we’re talking about “healthy,” there’s really one rule that cuts through all the noise:
Is it a whole food?

Kale? Absolutely.
Steak? Love that for you.
A plastic-wrapped bar made of protein isolates, chemical additives, sugar alcohols, and “natural flavors”? Yeah… no 🙅‍♀️

But somehow, protein bars have gotten this gold-star reputation in the wellness world—so let’s unpack how that happened.

📦 A Brief History of Protein Bars

So there were some protein cookies launching in the ‘50s for athletes, but it wasn’t until the 1960s, when NASA needed compact, calorie-dense “space food” for astronauts did they really start to get traction

Enter the Pillsbury "food stick" - a dense, shelf-stable bar built for zero-gravity. Naturally, they marketed it to consumers too (basically profiting off our excitement for space travel)

Fast forward to:

• 1986: endurance athlete Brian Maxwell launched the PowerBar, one of the first mass-market bars for athletes (key word: athletes)

• 1990s: enter the low-fat, low-carb craze. Skim milk took off, fat-free potato chips were all the rage, and protein started to get attention. We got the rise of Clif, ZonePerfect, and MET-Rx.

• 2010s: the “clean eating” era. Suddenly, bars like RXBAR are riding the wave with catchy taglines like “No B.S.”

Now we’re in the 2020s, and protein bars have fully rebranded into wellness snacks with buzzwords like: Adaptogens. Collagen. Nootropics. Gut health. Keto. Paleo. Vegan.

These bars are marketed to busy women who want to meet their macros, stabilize blood sugar, and nourish from the inside out without compromising taste or time - all while eating something that was made in a lab and wrapped in plastic.

And girlies, I say this with love. I’m not blaming ANY consumer who leans into bars. The sarcasm and snarky tone you might pick up on is a frustration towards companies that exploit consumers

So we’ve basically been convinced that highly processed space food = health food.

All these major companies (Kelloggs, General Mills, Mars, etc) are simply exploiting our desire for wellness by profiting off of the latest health trends and our insecurities.

We’re pretty much Regina George being tricked into eating our snacks…

Protein Bars: The Bulking and Protein Frenzy

So… we’ve officially lost the plot with protein.

Everywhere you look - Instagram, TikTok, product aisles, wellness podcasts - people are pushing this "more protein = more health" narrative.

• Cottage cheese everything

• Protein-fortified cereal that tastes like drywall

• Overpriced, chalky protein powders

• GLP-1 (Ozempic) diets with an obsessive focus on protein macros

And why? Sure, protein is important for muscle, metabolism, hormones…but for many women, this protein obsession is being sold under the promise of weight loss

and then enter the 💥 protein bar💥

The perfect product to cash in on our collective anxiety around “getting enough protein.”

And while we’ve already broken down the real science of protein needs, we want to dive into bars in particular….

The Protein Rundown

David’s Protein Bar: A Case Study

This story actually starts back in 2013…Peter Rahal and Jared Smith founded RX bars, touting egg whites, almonds, dates, and no B.S. (until they got sued for, well… some B.S.).

In 2017, they sold RXBAR to Kellogg’s for $600 million.

And now? Rahal’s back with David’s, a “next-gen” protein bar with a shiny new nutrition philosophy:

• 28g protein

• 0g sugar

• 150 calories

It’s low-calorie, high-protein, low-carb, and branded like it’s the second coming of wellness.

FYI you are perfect….David’s isn’t

But here’s the problem: they may hit their protein and amino acid composition targets, but they are still an ultra-processed food:

Let’s look at their ingredients:

🥛 PROTEIN

• Milk protein isolate

• Collagen

• Whey protein concentrate

• Egg white

Again, having these products every now and then? Totally fine.
But let’s be clear: these aren’t whole food proteins, and they’re not health foods.

They’re ultra-processed protein isolates - extracted, denatured, and stripped of their natural context.

Nowhere in nature do proteins like this exist

Milk? Sure, it has protein - but also vitamin A, D, calcium, and healthy fats.
Eggs? Same -protein, plus choline, B vitamins, and essential fats.

Protein powders on the other hand remove the co-nutrients that are typically found in the natural form of these foods, leaving you with a fragmented, highly processed product.

🔗 BINDERS & FILLERS:

• Maltitol and allulose: sugar alcohols that often cause bloating, gas, and digestive distress

• Soy lecithin: a processed emulsifier, often genetically modified

🧈 FATS:

• Modified plant fat (EPG): A synthetic fat alternative so new, there's virtually no long-term safety data. It’s built to resist digestion so it keeps things low in calories.

🧂 Sweeteners:

• Sucralose and acesulfame potassium: artificial sweeteners linked to microbiome disruption and altered insulin signaling. Acesulfame potassium in particular is known to be 200 x sweeter than sugar

So yes, David hit their macro target.
But in our opinion, it’s more of a science engineering project, not a health food snack to be consumed daily.

And listen, if you genuinely enjoy a bar now and then, and David’s is your thing, go for it. But I want you to feel empowered in that choice.

Choose it because you like it, not because you’ve been sold the lie that it’s a health food.

Other Concerns with Protein Bars

🍭 The Added Sugars

Protein bars are also *usually* really sweet. And whether it’s natural sugar, added sugar, or sugar alcohols, most bars are designed to taste like dessert.

• Most bars have anywhere from 10 to 20 grams of sugar—which is the same as a mini candy bar (most Clif Bars for example have around 15 g.)

• Others claim “no added sugar,” but rely sugar alcohols that can lead to a lot of digestive distress. (this is what Barebells use)

• Some are packed with artificial sweeteners that confuse hunger cues and can even change how the brain perceives sweetness.

The result? A bar that’s meant to balance blood sugar often ends up messing with our body instead.

🧪 The Chemicals & Ultra-Processed Ingredients

Then there’s everything else - the emulsifiers, stabilizers, synthetic fibers, gums, oils, and shelf-life extenders. Some of the common ones?

• Inulin - can cause bloating and cramping

• Polydextrose - can lead to diarrhea

• Guar gum - more bloating

• “Artificial” flavors - often petroleum bide products with limited long term safety

• Titanium Dioxide - banned in some countries due to safety concerns

And let’s just be honest: we know real food doesn’t stay “fresh” for 12 months in your purse.

Okay But What If I *Really* Want a Protein Bar?

We get it. I have them from time to time too - they are SUPER convenient and CAN help you meet some of your nutrient needs.

This is never about demonizing a food - everything deserves nuance

So here are a few things to keep in mind

1. be mindful of your daily consumption - as with any ultra-processed food, protein bars should be the exception, not the routine. I’ll grab one if I’m running late to a meeting or stuck in an airport…but day to day I’m aiming to get my protein from real, whole foods.

2. pick ingredients > macros - just because a bar has “20g of protein” doesn’t make it nourishing. Many bars are vehicles for sugar or the protein buzz. Flip to the label - do you actually recognize what’s in it? Are the first just processed starches and sweeteners? Let your body and judgment - not the marketing -be your guide.

3. make it a conscious choice - no shame or guilt needed! If you go for one, have it intentionally. It’s not necessarily a “health choice” but it can still be the right choice in the right context! If you’re really hungry, if you are craving one, if your choices are between a Twix and Davids….there are reasons to go for it! I’d rather you have a protein bar than push off your hunger and have a blood sugar crash. Do what makes sense for you.

Protein bars aren’t “bad” - but the context in which they’re consumed matters (see point 3).

+ there are some *better* options out there in our opinion. They’re lower in protein compared to David’s, but gives you real nourishment.

Are fav bars? We’ve got them here….

pst: this is a quick breakdown, not a full ingredient or nutrition list

• Balanced Tiger → brown rice protein, peanuts, and adaptogens → 4 g. added sugar (tapioca syrup); 11 g. protein

• Jacob’s Bar → grass-fed protein blend, honey, dates, almond butter; 20 g. protein

• IQ Bars → almonds, pea protein blend, prebiotic (heads up, can cause bloat in some), coconut oil, adaptogens and vitamin E; 12 g. protein